Different perspective
by age4age4
Summary: After talking to Chris Jericho, John Cena starts to wonder about life after WWE confusing almost everyone around himexcept for Trish Stratus.
1. Im sorry

PASSING DOWN THE TORCH

Disclaimer: None of the main characters are mine, but I would love to adopt J.Cena one day.

Authors Note: This is my first time writing a John Cena fic. So scared!

* * *

"So, you ever going to tell me what this is all about?"

While pretending to be enthralled in the almost-empty Corona bottle he was nursing, Chris sarcastically asked the person seated across from him: "Can't one man offer to buy another man a steak dinner without there being something up his sleeve?"

If this had been anyone else, John might've said that he guessed so, but seeing as though he was seated at a fancy restaurant with none other than Chris Jericho seated across from him, his quick witted response was: "Maybe...but not when that man is you--so, spill it, Jericho."

After letting out a small chuckle and then placing his beer back down on the table, Chris outwardly told John that he reminded him a lot of himself, "Especially when I first came into the WWE."

Not knowing what he was supposed to say to that, John kept quiet until it looked like Chris was about to continue.

"That fact is the reason why I brought you here tonight...I wanted to tell you face-to-face that after our rematch on Monday, I'm leaving the WWE--probably for good."

To say that John was surprised by that news would be an understatement.

There had been rumors going around backstage for a while now that Jericho's head wasn't really into wrestling anymore and that he had plans to fully commit to his band, Fozzy, but John had just thought that to be wishful thinking on everyone's part. He didn't really think that Chris was actually thinking of leaving the wrestling business for good. He couldn't believe it.

Not really knowing what to say, John waited a second to process this information before asking the older man what this had to do with him.

"More than you think." Chris outwardly replied, in a tone that clearly showed his sadness on the subject. "Like I told you before, I was just like you when I first entered into the WWE. I was younger, more attractive, and in better shape than most of these guys in this business. I was on the top of the world..."

"But then something happened to me...I woke up one day and discovered that I had completed everything that I wanted to do in this business. I had become the Intercontinental champion seven times, the WWF world champion twice, the WWF championship tag team champion three times, and the international, hard-core and heavyweight champion as well. I had done everything and I had nowhere else to go--and the fans could tell as well. I started getting yawns during my matches and boos even when I played a face. That's why I've decided to go peruse something else--somewhere else."

"That something else being Fozzy?"

If Chris had noticed the slight hint of amusement in John's voice, he didn't comment on it. "Yes, Fozzy...among other things. I have a lot of projects coming in right now and I'm going to take every chance I can get--and I think you should too."

Before Chris could continue on, John angrily replied: "If you think I'm just going to quit wrestling because you're having some mid-life crisis, then you can just forget it."

Noticing the tension in John's voice caused Chris to mentally back up a little and start over from the beginning. "That's not what I meant...what I mean is that, while you're wrestling I think you should really look at the offers that people are throwing at you. Your debut album is doing pretty good right now, but whose to say your next one will do just as well? And yeah, all the fans are screaming your name and the ladies are throwing themselves at you outside of every venue, but what happens when another wrestler comes in whose not only younger than you but also is ten times better looking than you as well. What are you going to do then?"

"I'm going to do what I always do...fight as hard as I can to stay on top and then when I'm there, I'm going to turn around and wave to all the people I passed bygetting up there."

Knowing that was something he would've said a few years ago, as well, caused Chris to smirk a little before continuing with: "I'm not trying to tell you what to do, by all means. I'm just telling you that you should keep your options open. I mean, look at Dwayne and Austin. They both probably felt the same way that I do and look at them now, they both have hit movies under their belts and still have time to wrestle every now and then, as well. They've made themselves into franchises and I think if you play your cards right, you can, as well. Just think about it, all right?"

As their waiter made his way back to their table with the check, John couldn't help but let Chris's question hang in the air for a few minutes before outwardly replying: "All right, I'll think about it."

"Good...now let's get the hell out of here before the waiter realizes I really don't have any money on me to pay for this."

* * *

Next part soon. 


	2. Crush

**CRUSH**

Authors Note: For this to work, I got to change history a little bit, but you know, that always happens in fan-fiction. :( Sorry.

December 15, 2008

"96..97..98..99...100..all right, ladies, that was the last set. Now, what do you say we hit the showers?"

After rolling his eyes at his best friend's comment, John had to hold back a small chuckle as one of the females in front of him retorted "In your dreams, Orton," before taking a sip out of the water bottle that set beside her; afterwords asking if they were still on for tomorrow night.

"Same time, same place," Randy commented, before helping Maria and then Melina off of the work-out mats they had been doing their crunches on. And then waiting until the two girls were safely out of hearing range, before replying: "What I wouldn't give for a piece of that?"

Knowing that the other man was all talk caused John to joke: "All you gotta do is cancel your wedding with Sam and I'm _sure_ you could make it happen with at least _one_ of them."

While making his way over to the work-out bench so they could finish their work-out routine for the night, Randy asked the other man if he had met his fiancee yet. "She'd kill both me _and_ you if she even **thought** we were having this conversation...I told you her dad's an ex-Marine, right? They know how to kill a man in 26 different ways without ever getting caught...even my dad's afraid of her and they haven't even met one another yet."

After chuckling at the image of Bob Orton scared of Randy's fiancee, who barely reached John's chest at 5'3, Cena admitted to Randy that Samantha was a little bit on the scary side but that's what had attracted Randy to her in the first place.

She never took any shit from him.

"So, are you ever going to tell me what Jericho wanted to talk to you about earlier?"

Waiting until after he had handed Randy the weight so they could begin spotting one another, John replied: "He wanted to talk to me about my future outside of wrestling. He said I should look into maybe doing some acting or another CD sometime soon."

While concentrating on the bench presses he was doing, Randy furrowed his eyebrows in confusion while asking John why the older man was so concerned. "What? Does he think just because he's about to retire from the business we all have to leave, as well?"

_I guess I _**wasn't **_the only one who heard that rumor going around._

"I don't know...I told him I'd think about it, though...I mean, Vince did make us take all of those acting classes a while back. We might as well put them to good use."

After giving Cena the weight back, silently telling the other man he was finished with his first set, Orton commented: "McMahon made us take those classes so we wouldn't screw up during our promos-not so we could retire from wrestling early and become some big shot Hollywood movie star..._Jericho_ might want to do that, but there's **no** way in hell I would do so. I didn't think you would, either."

Knowing Randy really wouldn't understand where he or Jericho was coming from given the fact that Randy had never wanted to do anything but follow in his dad and grandfather's footsteps and become a professional wrestler caused John to wait until he had switched places with his friend, with him now lying down on the weight bench, before continuing with: "I didn't say I was thinking about retiring, I just said I was _thinking _about maybe taking up some acting or something else outside of wrestling. You know as well as I do, that the injury rate in our business is sky high right now. So, what if I put a couple of eggs in a couple of different nests just in case one day I need something to fall back on. It's just a thought-nothing more, nothing less."

After a second or two of letting Cena's words hang in the air, Randy let out a small sigh before saying that he didn't particularly agree with the move, but he would support John's decision whether he liked it or not.

"That's the spirit! I knew I could count on you...now take this weight off of me before I accidentally strangle myself with it."

* * *

December 18, 2008

"Romance...romance...comedy...comedy..drama..drama...suspense...suspense...mystery...mystery..._foreign_?"

"Hey, at least with that one, you can work on your Spanish accent-cause believe me when I tell you that it sucks."

Without even bothering to reply to that statement, John pointed his middle finger up in Randy's direction, before turning back to the papers that were seated in front of him. "I still can't believe Stephanie got all these people to send me their scripts. I _just _told her two days ago that I was considering looking at some movie roles."

While casually flipping through one of the scripts that Cena had spread out in front of him, Randy retorted: "You actually think she **just **got these in the last two days? Stacey told me that people send Stephanie and Vince all kinds of scripts and different what-nots for us wrestlers. But unless you bring it up to her first, Stephanie doesn't think to let you know about it. It's kind of like: what you don't know, wont hurt you."

_I guess..._John commented to himself, before realizing what Randy had just said and raising an eyebrow in surprise: "Samantha still lets you talk to Stacey?"

Stacey was Randy's ex on-screen girlfriend and off-screen hook-up buddy. They had literally been joined at the hip until Randy had met Samantha a year and a half ago and the younger woman had told him that it had to be _just _her or nothing at all. He had reluctantly gone the monogamous route after that.

"Like I said...what _she _doesn't know wont hurt her...or me, for that matter. As far as Samantha's concerned, me and Stacey were never more than just friends. She's even coming to our wedding later this month."

_Uh-oh, I smell trouble..._John quickly thought to himself, but before he could voice his concerns to the other man, a knock at the door was heard, causing the thought to be pushed aside for the moment.

"I'll get it," Randy commented, before making his way towards the door to their hotel room; slightly surprised when, upon opening it, he found Stephanie's assistant Gladys behind it. "Don't tell me...more scripts for the movie king?"

"You know it," The older woman commented, before taking a bunch of papers out of her bag, handing them to Randy, and then afterwords handing the younger man two manila envelopes as well. "Also, Stephanie told me to drop these off to you two as well. There your story line books for the rest of the month. If you have any questions, you can call me on my cell. If not, have a good night and tell John to do the same."

With that being said, Gladys was gone just as quickly as she had came; causing Randy to shake his head slightly as he closed the door behind her. "That is one lady who deserves a break..I wouldn't want her job for the world."

While agreeing with that statement, John took the papers that Randy had in his hand from him, and then after throwing them to the side, he opened the manila envelope Orton had handed him, as well; flipping to his storyline for Monday night's Raw.

_Santino complains about Santa...I interrupt...we go back and fourth...Marella gets involved...we agree to have a mixed tag-team match later that night..and my partner is..._

After flipping the page of his book, Cena read the name of the person he would be teaming up with on Monday and couldn't help but grin at this information, causing Randy-who had chose to read his storyline later on-to furrow an eyebrow in questioning. "What..what's so funny?"

Without even bothering to outwardly reveal what he had just read, John handed Randy his story lines book and, a second later, he was met with a small grin from the other man, as well.

"Well, I guess what they say is true...dreams _really_ do come true."

Any other day, John might have told his best friend that **that** was the corniest line he had ever heard. But today was now not just another day.

Today was the day that he had just found out that he'd be teaming with his school boy crush.

Trish Stratus.

****  
What do you think so far?


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